Overview:
Kratom has gained international attention for its stimulating, sedating, and pain-relieving effects. While many users praise it as a natural aid for overcoming opioid addiction, scientific evidence remains limited. As the FDA pushes to restrict certain variants, the drug’s easy availability in smoke shops and gas stations has sparked growing concern among regulators.
Kratom: The plant-based drug even more controversial than Cannabis
For many years, there was no more controversial drug, especially in America, than cannabis. More commonly known as marijuana, as it was called during Reagan’s war on drugs and the D.A.R.E. program years, it was considered most heinous as a “gateway drug.”
The idea was that people who used cannabis, particularly teenagers, would end up using continually harder drugs such as cocaine, meth, and heroin. Of course, in 2025, cannabis is legal statewide in 24 states and counting. Research on the use of the drug has proven those fears to be false.
United States Views
And with the Trump administration recently releasing a video on the human endocannabinoid system and making statements about possibly reclassifying the drug at the federal level, it would appear that the days of cannabis being considered even mildly controversial are over.
However, in place of marijuana, a new intoxicating plant has taken center stage in America. Shockingly, the plant known as kratom has become even more controversial than cannabis ever was.
Often the subject of tens of thousands of heated political debates around the plant and the chemicals it contains, hundreds of thousands of people are both for and staunchly against the drug.
Current Regulation
Kratom is largely unregulated and legal to buy in many states. As an unregulated substance, you can find it everywhere, from smoke and head shops to gas stations. Sold in different formats, including powdered leaves, capsules, oils, extracts, and even synthetics, it is easy to find and obtain.
Many are becoming aware of the substances and beginning to ask questions. These include: What is kratom? What are the active chemicals in it? Where does it come from? And perhaps most importantly, is it safe?
What is kratom?
Mitragyna speciosa (or kratom as it is more commonly called) is a tropical tree of the Rubiaceae (coffee, bedstraw, or madder) family of plants. It is primarily found in Southeast Asia. Indigenous to Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Myanmar, it features rich green leaves.
The plant has been widely used in herbal medicine in these countries since the 19th century or earlier. The leaves contain intoxicating psychoactive chemicals. These are different variants of mitragynine, which is a kind of opiate.
What are the effects of kratom?
Like cannabis, there are different strains of kratom boasting different effects. There are red vein, white vein, and green vein variations of the leaves. Generally speaking, the red is more sedating, while the green and white are more stimulating.
However, taking different amounts of each strain can also produce different effects regardless of vein color. Higher doses will often produce different effects than smaller ones.
All strains of kratom provide some level of pain relief. Many users note the red vein strains as superior for such effects.
Where can you buy kratom?
Today, at least in America, kratom is unregulated in much of the country. And, while it has been banned in some areas, it is widely available in head shops and gas stations in states where the drug is legal.
There are also dozens of websites from which you can buy kratom. Often available in bulk at significantly lower prices than what you would pay retail, many users opt for online shopping. Many of these sites offer different preparations of the leaves, including powders, capsules, concentrates, extracts, and synthetic variants.
Furthermore, kava bars have started offering kratom beverages, including non-alcoholic cocktails and teas. These bars are popping up around the country. Most of these bars do not serve alcohol and offer kratom and kava beverages as a “healthy” yet still intoxicating alternative to booze.
Is kratom safe?
This is one of the greatest debates about the plant. Many users say that it is the only thing that helps with chronic pain. Thus, it is lauded as a miracle drug by many. It is discussed in hundreds of online threads on websites such as Reddit.
The plant is lauded by thousands of people who have noted it was the only thing that helped them to break free from addictions to pharmaceutical opiates or heroin.
Based on the small number of scientific studies done on the plant, some would indicate that the plant may actually be medically useful for these applications. Additionally, there is evidence that the drug is effective as a painkiller.
Unregulated effects
With that being said, kratom is unregulated. And, it is not currently a scheduled substance. Its availability is considered to be too loose by many, especially parents of teenagers. In the wake of the mass availability of kratom, various forms of potent extracts and synthetics as powerful as morphine have flooded the market.
One such synthetic kratom extract, known as 7-OH, has already been banned in several states, including Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Florida. Furthermore, the FDA is pushing for a federal ban on the substance.
Kratom: The most politicized plant-based drug today
From intense arguments on Reddit to the halls of the Food and Drug Administration, kratom draws both the ire of skeptics and the passion of those who consider it a revolutionary medicine.
Popular American journalist, scientific researcher, and drug documentarian Hamilton Morris went so far as to say it is perhaps the most politicized plant-based drug to date. He went on to speak at length about the plant on Thaddeus Russell’s Unregistered Podcast.
First researching the plant on his popular documentary series television show Hamilton’s Pharmacopeia, Morris speaks of both the positive aspects of the leafy green and its potential for abuse or harm.
Hamilton Morris on podcast
Having tried it himself on several occasions, he has been known to speak generally positively of the plant. But, in 2021, during his interview on the Duncan Trussell Family Hour podcast, he declined the offer of a kratom drink.
He noted that he was in the midst of a long period of sobriety. He did not want to break it by using the drug.
Conclusion
Until more rigorous scientific studies have been completed on kratom, we cannot say for sure if the drug is safe to use. With that being said, thousands of civilian use reports point to personal stories of the plant’s power to help people quit other substances.
And those living with chronic pain are using it instead of more intense pharmaceutical opiates. They claim that the drug is safer and more effective for them personally. Whether or not these claims will be confirmed or found to be false by science remains to be seen.
Sources:
- Frontiers in Public Health – Kratom Use and Policy
- Axios – Florida AG moves to ban 7-OH kratom products
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